The hustle and bustle of the Mill City Farmer's Market when I arrive just outside the Guthrie in Downtown Minneapolis for Katie and Dan's engagement session was such a welcome surprise. The clatter of booths being set up, the rickety wooden carts full of produce or flowers rumbling over the sidewalks and the echo of car horns and vendors calling out questions and answers to each other in the busyness of preparing for opening at 8am. It was glorious. Living in the serenity of Minnesota's Brainerd Lakes Area, the hustle and bustle of the city is a thing of novelty and beauty.
Just getting out of their car, I found Katie fixing Dan's shirt collar in preparation for our shoot. For the best light we met at 7am then strolled around Gold Medal Park, then played briefly outside the Guthrie before jumping in the car to go and shoot at Macalester College in Saint Paul where Katie and Dan started dating.
About a month ago I gave a presentation to a group of high school student about my work and a phrase I used that stuck out to them was "photography is my crowbar into the beautiful inner workings of other people's relationships." This may sound bad but what I meant is that I get to know my clients so well because of my work as a photographer and I absolutely love it. For example, I was privileged to see the beautiful gentleness and tenderness of Dan for Katie and Katie for Dan. As I was driving away from their session, these were the words that kept coming into my thoughts: gentleness and tenderness.
